Monday 30th June 2008

07:15 "fast" train completely packed. Atleast 11 people and I packed into the corridor. 07:45 a man walks briskly past asking if there is a doctor or nurse onboard. Moments later a senior conductor makes the same request, as a passenger has "collapsed". What a reassuring implication..... that maybe there were no on-board first aiders. The train stopped at Stratford, to wait for medics, many of us got on the central line tubes to complete the journey.

Friday 27th June 2008

AM

Interestingly the 07:37 train was quite empty, although with good reason, as we stopped just before Witham for about 10 minutes to allow the 07:45 "fast" (yea right) train to charge past us.

Two young ladies of the blonde variety boarded at Chelmsford.  They were initially quite load and concerned over which side of the train to sit on to avoid bright sunlight.  There was also a fascinating conversation over the challenge of applying make up on moving trains and not doing a "bridget".

For the first 10 minutes I was just about able to concentrate on reading my book, Black Gold, however as I hit the pages about Napoleon and his coffee consumption habits I became intolerably distracted so I gave up and scribbled this....

"did xxx go out last night" - self note I've always loved the term 'going out', I don't know about you but I've been leaving my house (going out) pretty much since the day I was born.... I digress, the conversation develops "he said, she said"......"is xxxx going to Ibiza"..... and my favourite "do you think she's annoyed coz she ain't gonna be a bridesmaid". Class or rather 'standard class'.

Wednesday 25th June 2008

AM

Faulty trains in the Ipswich area meant the 07:30 (Norwich to London) train was going to arrive in Colchester at 07:54.  Luckily there was a train from another line calling in at 07:33 - amazingly I got a seat.  This train probably came from Colchester Town.  Despite being crushed in my seat by other passengers and my knees touching another mans I fell asleep for most of the journey.

Monday 23rd June 2008

PM

20:00 So close to arriving back in Colchester but then train is suspiciously static for a few moments. We are then advised there is a points failure at Colchester and that ‘engineers are working as fast as possible’ – joy.

20:15 A very courteous announcement that the points have been “plumped” and once the two trains in front of us, and the station, have cleared we will be on our way.
So despite living 4 minutes walk away from Colchester North train station I probably won’t be consuming any food this evening until atleast 9pm. Good job I enjoying fish finger sarnies and a glass of red for lunch.

20:35 I spoke to soon, we are still static, some banter breaks out with some fellow passengers who are also sitting on the floor. One lady advises me how she claimed back £600 last year in delay repay compensation and that the standard of service was no different last year. We amuse how a freight train just cruised past - one gent noting that it was more important than us.

AM
Narrowly missing the 07:15 I held out for the 07:30 with the view I may be in with a chance to getting a seat….. this wasn’t the case along and with seven other passengers the cold floor in between two carriages was the place for me.
08:05 I think we are in Shenfield, there has been an announcement that a broken down train between Shenfield and Brentwood is causing delays.
08:15 we are on the move again.

Tuesday 17th June 2008

On the 19:00 train (London LS to Colchester) its 19:04 and we are informed the train is delayed from departing as a member of staff was held up. Later on in the journey there is some seriously slow driving, this was acknowledged by an explanation of 'speed restrictions'.

One final journey and my week of trains is over

Wednesday 11^th June 2008

Following a short interview on BBC Radio Essex about the current situation I made my way to the station.  It was possible to get a standing position on a train at 07:25am.  Obviously the journey slightly overran, I felt sorry for the guys who couldn’t get on at Chelmsford – you couldn’t have had anyone more packed onto that train.

Mid PM – a friend advises of more difficulties following an accident with two engineers.  17:51 just wrapping up at work and fighting to get out and get home in time for a nice glass of St Emilion, feet up in front of the Apprentice and then pack for the Isle of Wight Festival.  Thank god I won’t have to endure any more train journey’s this week. 

Tuesday 10^th June 2008

A video shoot in Reading starting at 9am meant I took the radical move to request a taxi from Colchester to London this morning.  This meant a 5:15am pick up, as pleasant as the journey was I wasn’t able to get much sleep as I was buzzing about the day ahead – shooting an internet viral featuring Melinda Messenger!

Having let local media aware of my new blog I took a call today from SGR Radio (North Essex/Suffolk) where we conducted a pre recorded interview on why I had set up the blog and outlining my basic frustrations with our nation’s train services.  I also had an email from BBC Suffolk and arranged a 06:40 interview for tomorrow.

We wrapped our filming at 5ish and I jumped on a tube to get to Liverpool street in the vain hope of getting the usual 19:00 to Norwich via Ipswich, the idea being I would arrive in Ipswich and be able to play football with my friends starting at 21:00.

The 19:00 was cancelled but what joy when I saw an additional service had been put on for 19:08 going (via many stations) to Ipswich. The clock ticked and before I knew it we had exceeded our departure time. A number of passenger’s went to enquire with a chap on the platform who was no doubt repeating the same response to each of them in turn (maybe a megaphone might have helped?).  19:15 and all was revealed, the train was cancelled as they didn’t “have a driver” – in frustration I saw a middle aged man in first class bang his fist against the wall of the carriage.  A mini stampede ensued towards a neighbouring platform where a 19:30 train to Norwich was set to run. I boarded first class and took a seat.  Given I didn’t have a first class ticket this isn’t a moral decision I’m comfortable with but I guess at the time survival of the fittest human instincts kicked in – atleast I can take comfort in persuading the young mum not to fight her way through first class and beyond with a buggy and to sit opposite me, despite her lack of a legitimate ticket also. 

20:05 slowly we set off arriving in Ipswich at gone 21:00, I’m late for football, will be late for bed and no doubt the trains will be late tomorrow.

Monday 9th June 2008

I appreciate that working in this service environment isn’t an easy job, and that’s when everything runs smoothly, however given that I spend a small fortune on trains (nearly £500 PCM) I am beginning to expect better. I hope the board of National Express are listening.

Following 6 months of commuting from Colchester to London, and countless year’s waiting on platforms in Lincoln/Nottinghamshire I’ve decided it’s about time to share with the world my experiences on the trains. As the weeks progressed from Christmas I have found it increasingly more challenging to find a seat on a train leaving Colchester at peak times, thankfully a Poundsaver shop delivered a solution – a fisherman’s stool. This stool has empowered me no end, with the ability to sit outside the toilet’s in between carriages, allowing me enough space to get through the Metro (ok so that’s occupied 6 minutes of my journey) and of course a trusty paperback (noting the lack of wi fi on the train or the desire to become impotent by having a laptop on my lap). Now we all understand that from time to time there are going to be technical issues or even the tragic suiciders which can cause delay to our journeys but of late I’ve noticed an increasing trend in National Express’ inability to offer clarity over the problems and solutions, let alone some contingencies. This evening I had to endure a two-hour wait on the concourse of Liverpool Street due to ‘overhead power line failure’, one would have thought a bus service to some of the larger destinations such as Chelmsford, Colchester, Ipswich and Norwich wouldn’t have been hard to organise, especially from a company whom’s main business is buses! Over the last 6 months there have been countless delays, noting two occasions straight after a bank holiday – again no bus contingencies arranged. On one occasion, after a fatality near Witham, there were buses arranged but no one had communicated this to us chaps waiting on the platform. I was quite comfortable cutting some video on a powerbook for around half an hour, until I noticed the temperature had dropped to a level where I could no longer feel my fingers. I strolled into the waiting room and loudly boasted that I wanted to get back to Colchester and would any stranger(s) like to share a taxi with me. A man stepped up to the mission and together we walked with a pugnacious stride over the tracks and outside of the station; to our amazement we were greeted with a small collection of single decker buses all of which travelling to our preferred destination of Colchester (and beyond). Quite how this couldn’t have been communicated to those of us waiting on the platform is beyond me. Stratford station and the tube lines from it where at virtual stand still the other day when a bridge had collapsed over the tracks near Liverpool Street, god only knows what will happen when the Olympics arrives. People will come from Beijing to London with seamless effort, sadly for them getting from London to Essex might prove more of an effort – I can hear the tannoy announcements now “We are sorry for the delay in the 2012 Olympics Mountain Bike race two of your contestants are stuck on a National Express Train” …. Its 10:15 and a fellow comrade in the struggle to get home has just departed my company to get out at Witham – sadly she has to take a hit on a taxi journey to Kelvedon. Finger’s crossed I will arrive in Colchester within 15 minutes, where a cup of hot lemon will be consumed. I do hope my greenhouse plants are coping without their anticipated water feed.